Morning Light
by Eon Radiance
Summary: In the midst of the upcoming battle with the Titans, Percy meets up with a 10 year old girl, her sayings and wisdom making things pop up here and there. With things unraveling, Percy and friends wonder who she really is.


_Remember when we were young? Remember when we use to dance and sing? Remember when we use to laugh and play? Remember when we use to say those silly things?_

_Do you remember **me**?_

I was suppose to be heading to Camp Half-Blood today, but turns out Grover needs my help with a recruit. He found her in one of those rich preppy schools, and she was attracting quite alot of monsters. He said that was unusual due to the fact that she only 10 and in the fourth grade. I only started getting attacked by monsters when I was 12. _Hope she's not one of the Big Three kids, _I thought to myself.

So here I am, with Grover by my side and my mom driving us to the school.

I stared out the window at the passing trees. They reminded me of Thalia, though none of them were pine trees. The street seemed to be endless in one never ending straight line, but I finally saw a turn in the distant.

When my mom turned the corner, a large building with a fountain the front was looming over us. The yard was mowed and had bright flowers. The sign above it read 'St. Peter's Academy'. Uh-oh. That meant it was a Catholic school. It would be pretty hard to convince her that _God_ was actually Zeus.

My mom pulled into the Parking lot. Everyone was in uniform, which was inconvenient because I was hoping that maybe we could sneak into the school unnoticed. The High Schoolers fooled around in front of the gymnasium while the younger kids were holding their parent's hands. The cloudy weather made it look like everyone was in a bad mood.

Me and Grover hoped out of the car just as the bell rang. A girl sprinted past us as, her pigtails bouncing up and down. She was average height and she had brown hair.

"That's her" Grover whispered.

We hurried after her. But before we could catch up with her, a large woman stepped in front of us, blocking our path.

"And where do you think _you_ two are going?" she yelled eying us. Her nose looked like a beak and her large eyes made it hard to concentrate. Her mouth was squeezed into a small line.

I then realized what she was talking about. I looked down at my clothes. _No Uniform, No entry_ a voice whispered inside my head. Grover looked just as confused as I was. I didn't know how we could get uniforms. I quickly piped up.

"Um... Well.... we're... visiting" I stuttered. She still eyed us not making an attempt to move.

Grover and I waited uncomfortably while we waited for a response.

"Go to the office. They'll send you to the right place" She finally moved revealing an empty hallway, with the pigtailed girl no where in sight. "It's down the hallway, just take a right once you reach the end."

We walked down the hallway looking around, maybe hoping that the pigtailed girl was still here somehow. We reached the little office, with the pale yellow walls that reminded me of vomit. We heard a woman's voice in the office. Her booming voice told us that she was the person we needed to see.

"Hello, you're visitors I suppose?" She paused, shuffling through some papers before she continued. "Go to this room" She said handing us a tiny slip of paper.

Outside, someone was watching us.

--

By the time the end of the day finally rolled around, we'd only seen the pigtailed girl once, and that was this morning. We exited the school and sat on the school benches. We scanned the students looking for a small girl with her hair pulled up. After 15 minutes, we finally spotted her. She sprinted past us, barely making a glance. Me and Grover got up as quickly as we could.

"Wait! We need to talk to you!" We yelled running after her. She turned a corner, and disappeared from our sight. When we reached the corner, we heard a soft voice behind us.

"Who are you." She whispered, her voice having some kind of trance in it. We turned around to find a pale girl with her back pack clutched in her hands. Her amber eyes looked almost as if light had somehow gotten trapped inside. I knelt on my knees speaking with a gentle voice, hoping not to scare her.

"You need to come with us. Your in danger here." Her amber eyes barely flinched. She stared at me a couple of heartbeats before she finally responded.

"I can only run." she said lowering her gaze. She pulled her backpack on her back, as if getting ready to run away.

"No, don't run. We won't hurt you. We're just like you. Half-Bloods. Do you live with only one parent?" I asked getting up.

"I live with my family. My mommy, my daddy and my brother." Her small hand clutched her bag tighter.

"You mean, you live with a mom _and _a dad?" I asked.

"Well, yah.... doesn't everyone?" she asked her eyes pouring into mine again. "No kidding Percy, everyone has a mom and a dad!" Grover pointed out a tad late.

_No kidding, Grover._

"Can you come with us? We can take you somewhere safe" I reached out for her hand, but she pulled away stumbling back a little bit. "No, No.... Stop! Leave me alone!" She said shaking her head. She started running, and me and Grover were left to stumble after her. She sprinted around the corner, out of sight. Me and Grover ran as fast as we could. She was really fast for a 10 year old.

"Stop! Wait! We won't hurt you! You need to-" I was cut off by an ear splitting scream. Me and Grover looked at each other before we started running faster. We found the girl, on the ground with her knee covered in blood. A hell hound stood over her, his mouth getting ready to take a bite. I immediately took out Riptide and dove the sword into the massive dog. It let out a loud whimper before finally exploding into dust. The girl looked at me confused and yet at the same time wondering what happened. Her face covered in dirt, blood and monster dust. I looked at her knee, noticing it was a large cut. I also noticed that she had other little marks all over her legs.

"What happened?" I asked pointing at all her marks and scars.

"I tried to run" she whispered.

I picked her up and held her in my arms. I tried to feel for a pulse, but I couldn't feel anything. Grover went to go find the car. When we finally reached it, we found my mom asleep. We had to yell her name a couple of times before she finally woke up.

"Oh my gods Percy! What the heck happened!" She yelled throwing her hands up in the air. She grabbed the girl out of my hands putting her in the back seat with Grover. "Get in the car! We need to get her to camp!" my mom yelled starting the car. I jumped in the car. The girl stared into space as the cut gushed out blood.

"Is it hurting you?" Grover asked, his voice soft and gentle.

She didn't respond. She wiped her hand on the cut revealing a deep cut, blood making it's way out. "I need a tissue" she whispered. I dug around the car until I found the box. She took it and rubbed her hands against it, red covering it completely. The cut had started bleeding again and she was starting to look pale.

"Mom! Drive faster!" I yelled along with the rest of the honking horns. "I'm trying Percy!" she yelled back. Blood was dripping onto the floor of the car and onto her other leg. Grover pulled out his reed pipes, playing a song that was hopefully slowing down the flow of the blood. The little girl's face was expression-less. The light in her eyes rested on the back of my mom's chair.

All of a sudden, my mom got free of the road block and raced along the side of the road. I could see the strawberry fields in the distance.

--

When we reached the edge of camp, my mom sent us off with a shove. I yelled for help, some campers peaking out to see what was happening. Me and Grover ran straight for the Big House. Annabeth was suddenly by my side.

"Percy! What happend!" She asked running beside us. I could feel her breath on my arm. I looked into her grey eyes and saw confusion. She looked different from last summer, her face sharper but yet fuller at the same time. She looked down at the small, pale girl in my hands. She gasped and pushed me giving me an extra boost for speed, her arm on my back for only a moment.

When Chiron spotted us, he had a some kids from the Apollo cabin with him. They were pulling out a small mattress. I gently put the girl on the mattress, her eyes distant. Her clothes were covered in blood and her lips were slightly open as if trying to scream. I looked down at my shirt to find it soaked in blood. The crimson red sent me reminders of the upcoming battle with the Titans. We had only a little above 80 campers, and the gods of course, but the Titans had everybody else. Annabeth tossed me a shirt. "Go change" she said.

I walked towards my cabin when Clarisse stopped me. _Joy._

"Why the hell is your shirt covered in blood?" she asked, sounding worried but at the same time annoyed. "Another kid found. Hellhound attacked her. I had to carry her here" I briefed her. "Did you hear?" she asked suddenly. I wiped the back of my head on my forehead. "No, what happened?" I asked trying to hide my worried expression.

"The camper" she said

"Uh... you think you can tell me a little more?" _We're all campers, genius._

She sighed, as if my question was like the weight of the sky. "The camper, the kid you brought back. They think she's a warning." I just stared at her.

_Warning?_ _For what?_

"From Kronos?" I asked. She nodded her head. "They think the hellhound was the warning for us, and the kid was the victim. She probably won't make it, I mean just look at your shirt." She wiped her finger on my shirt. When she pulled it back, it was covered in the dark blood. She walked away. All I could think about was the girl.

_She's probably not going to make it_, Clarisse's words echoed.

--

When I was finally washed up and dressed, I made my way to the Big House. I could see the clouds hovering the sky. I guess Zeus wasn't too happy today. The front porch consisted of Apollo kids running in and out getting supplies. When I reached the room, I found Annabeth crouched next to her. Her pale face was in a small frown and her eyes stared at the ceiling. As I got closer, I realized that she was talking to Annabeth.

"..... I tried to run." she finished. She closed her eyes, and breathed a sigh.

I crouched next to Annabeth, our shoulders almost touching. I took the little girl's hand and said "Where do you get all the little scratches?"

"I.... tried..." she shuddered. Her cold hand hung limply in mine. She closed her eyes and tears ran down her cheeks. "It.... wasn't.... suppose to be... like...." she continued. Her tears choking her as she spoke.

"Be like what?" Annabeth whispered. The girl shivered as if just remembering it made her scared. Annabeth looked at me. She motioned to the door. I stood up and she followed me.

Annabeth was just a little bit shorter then me, making her tall but slim and slender. Her hair hung loosely in it's ponytail. Her hands swung by her side, and occasionally bumped into mine.

The campers tried to ask us what was happening, but their questions were blocked away from my mind. _A warning?_ I didn't know why they would send us a warning. I mean, they already took half of our campers. Maybe this was the beginning.

Of the end.

_NO!_ A voice shrieked in my mind. _How could this happen?_ Maybe if we had just taken her, she wouldn't be dying right in front of our eyes.

"Did they give her any nectar?" I asked Annabeth.

"It would kill her, she's too young to be drinking that drink" her eyebrows, furrowed together as if trying to set everything straight in her mind. "I don't know Percy. This is all so confusing with the war. I just... don't know what to do anymore." She sighed. I didn't know what I could say to make her feel better.

I had promised the girl we would keep her safe if she came with us.

She's here and she's bleeding to death.


End file.
